Machine for forming tubular bodies



E. RENDANO. MACHINE FOR FORMING TUBULAR BODIES.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, I920. 1,394,1 16.

5141mm toz @JZ erzaem awg a I? ctoz me d Patented Oct. 18, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

E. RENDANO. MACHINE FOR FORMING TUBULAR BODIES.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1920. 1,394,1 16.

Patented Oct. 18, 1921.

i A E 5TH wanton V g 7733/ 67262 72 Iii %M [W11 l/fi ei n v E. RENDANO. MACHINE FOR FORMING TUBULAR'BODIES.

APPLICATION FILED APR..9 1920- Patented Oct. 18, 1921.

3 SHEETSSHEET 3.

- avwewbo c 2 7ml fezzamza UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMIL RENDANO, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK. ASSIGNOR TO FORBES TUBULAR PROD- UCTS CORPORATION, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 18, 1921 Application filed April 9, 1920. Serial No. 372,423.

. invented a new and useful Machine for Forming Tubular Bodies, of which the f0.- lowing is a specification.

My invention relates to a machine for forming tubular bodies.

An object of my invention is to make a tube or body of a relatively narrow strip of metal spirally wound, having the spirals mutually interengaged, which will be exceedingly strong and rigid.

Another object is to provide a machine for forming engaging portions near the edges of a metal strip and bending the strip longitudinally into spiral con olutions,having the edges of the convolutions mutually interengaged.

Another object is to provide a tubular body which will be cheap to manufacture and superior in many respects to plain or corrugated tubular bodies.

Another object is to provide means for forming a strip into spiral convolutions without the use of rotating or other mandrels.

Other objects and advantages will appear as the specification proceeds.

Briefly, a machine for carrying out the above object may consist of rolls for forming engaging 0r interlockingv ortions at the edges of a strip and a ring for bending and directing the strip longitudinally into substantially circular form and causing the circles thus formed to take a spiral form with the edges of the adjacent spirals overlapped for interengagement. A pair of rolls may be provided for pressing the overlapped edges of the strip together to interlock the convolutions.

lWltll my machine either hot or cold rolled steel strips or other metal may be employed.

In the drawings are shown merely a preferred form of my invention.

Figure l is a side elevation of my machine;

Fig. 2 is a. front elevation thereof;

Fig. 3 is a section taken in the plane of the lin 3- Fig. 4 is a fragmentary View, on an enlarged scale, of a pair of forming rolls;

Fig. 5 is a similar view of a pair of feed rolls;

Fig. 6 is a similar view of a pair of bending rolls;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view, on an enlarged scale, of a pair of pressing rolls;

Fig. 8 is a perspective diagrammatic view showing the various rolls having a strip passing between them;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary view, on an enlarged scale, of a section of tube made in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 10 is a detail fragmentary view of my inproved bending and strip directing device; and

Fig. 11 is a diagrammatic view showing the gearing for operating the various rolls. Upon a suitable base 5 is mounted a standard or frame 6 for supporting the operative parts of my machine. Journaled in the frame is a pair of rolls 7, 8,, suitably fastened to shafts, such as 9. Either or both of these rolls may be mounted so as to be adjustable for accommodating various thicknesses of metal. Also mounted upon the frame, preferably in a vertical position, are a pair of bending rolls 10, 11, suitably journaled upon shafts, such as 12. These rolls may likewise be adjustably mounted so as to accommodate different widths of strip.

In order to feed the strip properly between the aforesaid rolls I may provide a pair of feed rolls 13, 14, suitably adjustably mounted in the frame upon shafts, such as 15. 16, 17 are a pair of pressing rolls suitably journaled in the frame on shafts, such as 18. One or both of these latter rolls may be suitably grooved, as at 51, 52.

Mounted upon the frame is a strip bend ing and directing device comprising a body portion 20 which may be secured to the frame in any suitable manner. In this body 20 I mount a ring 22 which is preferably of hardened steel. This ring has one edge shaped to spirally guide the strip, and that edge is preferably inclined to the direction of movement of the entering strip. 21 is a circular rib preferably formed integrally with the body 20 and is slightly spaced from the ring 22 to acc mmodate one bent edge of the strip in passing about the bending and directing device. The body 20 and rib 21 may be of hardened steel to resist wear, but in most cases an ordinary steel casting will suflice for the purpose. Mounted'adjacent the ring 22 and the rib 21 in any approved manner as by means of screws may be one or more guides 23 for the purpose of holding a strip against the ring and body. These guides may be curved on one side as shown at 24 for the purpose of directing the strip toward the rib 21 should the edge of the strip in passing about the rib become removed therefrom.

At the upper end of this strip bending and directing device may be another guide 25 for the purpose of directing the strip from the pressing rolls into the directing device. Upon the directing device I may also mount a series of rollers, such as 26, for the purpose of guiding and assisting in bending a strip. Suitable guides, such as 27 and 28, may be mounted adjacent the rolls for properly directing the strip through the machine.

From an inspection of Fig. 11 the gearing for driving the various rolls of my machine will be understood. 29 is a driving shaft, havingthereon a gear 30 meshing with a relatively large gear 31 on one of the shafts 9. Keyed upon this shaft is a smaller gear 33. Upon the other shaft 9 is secured a gear 34 of thesame size as the gear 33. Upon the two shafts 15 are mounted suitable gears, such as 35, meshing with each other and driving the feed rolls 13. 14. Also secured'upon the lower shaft 15 is a gear 36, of the same size as the gear 35, and between the gears 33 and 36 is mounted an intermediate gear 37. Upon the two shafts 18 are mountedsuitable gears 38-38 41 secured thereto.

meshing with each otherand driving the pressing rolls 16, 17. Also mounted upon the lower shaft 18 is a gear 39, of the same size as the gear 38. An intermediate gear 40 meshes with the gears 36 and 39. It will be obvious, due to the relative size of the gears shown and the interposition of the intermediate gears, that all three sets of rolls will be rotated in the same direction. The rolls are of such size that the eriph? eral speed of each is substantia ly the same, and with gearing proportioned asshown the rolls would be of substantially equal diameter.

The shaft'29 may be driven in any suitable manner, such as by means of the pulley U on the shaft 29 may wlieel 42, for the purpose of rotating the shaft slightly in either direction by hand. 43 is any suitable form of clutch mechanism, operated by a lever 44, for starting and stopping the machine. Obviously, any form of belt shifter would se ve the same purpose.

The rolls 16, 17 may be journaled in boxes, such as 45, which are carried in a yoke 46., Adjusting screws 47 may co-act with'the boxes 45 for adjusting the roll 16 up or down relatively to the roll 17.

As shown in Fig. 4, the rolls 7 and 8 are provided with annular grooves and projections for bending one ed e of a strip upwardly at an angle to t e strip and for bending the other edge of the strip downwardly at an angle thereto. These rolls also channel the strip, as shown at 49 (Fig. 5). These upturned and downturned edges and the channel afterward form the. interengaging portions of the spiral body.

In F ig.6 are shown the rolls 10 and 11, for further bending the edges of the strip so that they will slightly overstand the body portion of said strip. I

In Fig. 5 is shown a strip of sheet metal passing through the feed rolls 13, 14, the interengaging portions having been formed upon the strip by the two preceding sets of rolls shown in Figs. 4 and 6.

Fig. 7 shows the strip' passing between the rolls 16, 17, and it will be noted that the edge 50 passes beyond the outer end of one of the rolls, whereas the other edge passes within the groove 51. Within the groove 52, which is ordinarily shallower than the groove 51, may be seen two interengaging edge portions of a stripreceiving the final pressing operation to form the interlocked joint.

In order tosupport the spiral body after the same leaves the machine, there may be provided a pair of rollers 53, adjustably journaled in a framework 54, supported by the standards 55. These rollers will form a rotating support for therotating spiral body as it comes from the machine.

The operation of my device is as follows:

The end of a strip of metal is first introduced into the guide 27, from which it passes between the rolls 7 and 8, where the channel portion 49 and the bent edges hereinbefore described are formed. After passing between the rolls 7 and 8 the strip passes between the rolls 10 and 11, where the edges receive a further bending, as described. Ordinarily, the friction of the forming rolls will be sufficient to cause the strip to pro gress through the machine, but, as a precaution, to prevent bending 0r buckling, I provide the feed rolls 13 and 14. which may engage the strip between its edges, and feed it through the guide 28 and between the rolls 16 and 17. The formed strip will enter between the rolls 16 and 17 on the lefthand side, as viewed in Fig. 7, and the upturned edge 50 will pass by the ends of said rolls and will not be disturbed. The channeled portion and down-turned edge will pass into' thegroove 51 and be slightly orimped together. The strip, after first between the rolls 16-17 in the plane of the groove '51; when the body hascompleted a second revolution the partially crimped edges will receive a final crimping pressure in the plane of the groove 52. The rolls 16-17 serve to feed the strip around the.

bending device or die member 20. Asa result of this method of manufacture a spiral body, such as described and of any desired length, may be produced, depending merely upon the length of the strip employed. The guide 28 may be properly beveled, as at 28, for guiding the strip, coming from the bending a7nd directing device, between the rolls 16, 1'

It should be noted that the bent edge 50 of one convolution engages with the channel 49 and bent edge of another convolution, and after the edges are pressed together an interlock between the convolution is formed, as shown in Fig. 9, which will be substantially smooth upon the inside and provide a spiral arch or corrugation upon the outside, and this joint will be substantially water and air tight.

By reference to Fig. 7 it will be seen that, by forming the interlocked seam in a groove in one of the rolls, the several layers of metal which are folded together to constitute said seam are positively locked against slippage or free movement in any direction. As willbe seen, the efiect of the roll surface in the bottom of the groove 51 will be to partially compact the folds and true up the sides of the seam. When the seam passes through the relatively shallower groove 52, the folds thereof are further compacted and the sides further trued up. By this method of operation a seam of uniform proportions, compactness and strength will be produced.

The forward end of a tube as it emerges from the machine will, of course, have a projecting edge, as shown just to the right of the roller 16 in Fig. 7, formed by the extreme forward end of the strip. This end may be sheared oif in order to provide a tube having a squared-ofi' end. The same result may be accomplished by shearing off a triangular piece on the proper angle from the strip before it enters the machine.

Conduits, or tubular bodies made according to my method may be used for a great variety of purposes, such as, for example,

\ ash cans, barrels kegs, so-called salamanders, etc., and, in fact, for any purpose where a strong, rugged, tubular body is required.

While I have described a preferred form of machine in great detail, I wish it to be understood that many modifications may be made, all coming within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described, means for bending the edges of a strip at an angle to the strip, a device including a ring having an inclined edge and a rigid rib spaced-from said ring for forming the strip longitudinally into spiral convolutions with the adjacent edges of the convolutions interengaged, and a pair of rolls geared together and positioned adjacent said devices for pressing the edges together to interlock the respective convolutions with each other, said rolls being so positioned as to cause the edges of the strip to pass twice between them.

2. In a machine of the character described, means for forming engaging. portions on the edges of a sheet metal strip, an annular forming device for receiving said strip upon the inside thereof and forming the latter into interengaged spiral convolutions and comprising a substantially circular rib for bending the strip into circular form, and a ring having an edge inclined to the direction of movement of the entering strip for engaging one edge of the latter and bending it into spiral form and a pair of rolls for receiving said strip and forcing the latter about the inside of said annular device for .forming the convolutions, said rolls serving also to press the interengagededges of the convolutions for locking them together to form a tube.

3. In a machine of the character described, a pair of rolls for bending the edges of a strip at an angle to the strip, a second pair of rolls between which the bent strip is adapted to pass, one bent edge of the strip passing beyond, the end of one roll, one of said rolls having a groove to accommodate the other bent edge of the strip, and a device for bending the strip longitudinally into a series of spiral convolutions and causing the bent edges of adjacent convolutions to be interengaged, said interengaged edges passing twice between said pair of rolls for bending the interengaged edges for locking the convolutions together.

4. In a machine of the character described, a pair of rolls for bending the edges of a strip at an angle to the strip, a second pair of rolls between which the bent strip is adapted to pass, one bent edge of the strip passing beyond the end of one roll, one of said second mentioned rolls having a plurality of circumferential grooves, and a device for bending the strip into a series of spiral convolutions and interengaging the adjacent edges of said convolutions, one of said grooves and cooperating roll slightly crimping the interengaged edges and the other of said grooves and cooperating roll finally crimping the interengaged edges.

5. In a machine of the character described, means for forming engaging portions at the edges of a strip, means for bending the strip longitudinally into a series.

of interengaging spiral convolutions, including a rib for bending the strip into substan tially circular form, and a ring for bending the strip in a spiral and guiding the same so as to cause the engaging portions thereof to mutually interengage, means for pressing the engaging portionsto form a conduit and a rotating support for the conduit as it emerges from the machine.

6. In a machine of the character described, a pair of rolls for forming a chan nel in and bending the edges of a strip, means for guiding a strip to said rolls, a second pair of rolls for bending the edges of the strip at an acute angle to the strip, a pairof feed rolls engaging the strip intermediate the edges, a pair of rolls one of which has a plurality of grooves for accommodating the bent portions of the strip, a device including two spaced rings to ac commodate one bent edge of the strip between them, one of said rings bending the strip longitudinallyv into substantially circular form and the other of said rings bending the strip into spiral form and guiding the latter so as to cause the bent portions and channel on the strip to inter-engage, said strip passing once between said last mentioned rolls then about said device, and then passing a second time between said last-mention of a spiral, said rib and ring being adjacent to but spaced from each other, the space between said rib and ring being provided to accommodate one bent edge of the strip.

8. Ina machine of the character described, a device for bending-and forming a strip into interengaged spiral convolutions comprising a body portion having a substantially circular part upon the inside for band ing a strip longitudinally into circular form and a ring positioned adjacent to but spaced from said substantially circular part, said ring having an edge inclined to the direction of movement of the entering strip and engaging one edge of the latter for forming the strip into a spiral, said inclined ring and substantially circular part being spaced apart to accommodate one edge of a strip, and a pair of rolls for forcing the strip about said device and crimping'the edges of the interengaged spiral convolutions.

EMIL nn'nnano; 

